For my final day of driving in Australia, before I hop on the plane for the rest of my adventures, I decided to continue driving down the 4WD Balladonia Track towards Esperance for a quick visit to Cape Le Grande National Park and my favourite beaches in Australia. I wasn’t expecting the 4WD track to continue for as long as it did, but it was quite an exciting drive and passed through one of the largest forests of its kind in the world. I never saw a soul along the way, but I did come to one very old homestead built in 1890 with a hearth out front that was being lovingly restored and pretty cool to check out.
While the Balladonia Track was a more direct route to Esperance from where I had camped, it was certainly much slower going for a while. As I continued down the track, the road continually improved and even became sealed/paved well before I intersected with Fisheries Road just outside of Esperance. I eventually made it down to Lucky Bay, where you will find the whitest sand in all of Australia, and partook in a bit of body surfing. I think Lucky Bay also has some of the best body surfing in Australia. Afterwards, I decided to try out a new exit from the park, driving the 22 km up Cape Le Grande Beach next door. I got advice from a park ranger who warned me what to look out for, but the trip was successful, and I made it to the end without any problems. I did witness someone in a 2-wheel-drive low-rider car with a girlfriend who appeared as though he might not have made the best choice in trying to drive on the beach (which normally has pretty hard sand), but he did have other people fishing nearby to help him out if he needed it. Not sure I would do the drive again, because you never really get to appreciate the gorgeous beach you’re driving along when you are constantly obsessed with soft, sandy bits that might bog your car down.
Afterwards, I popped into Esperance for a coffee and a rejig, and then hopped on the long road straight back to Perth. When I got to Raventhorpe, I met up with a big police sting operation tracking car speeds and breathalysing drivers. I was quick to point out that in the eastern states, we were no longer required to blow in a straw – only count to ten – which probably came across as being a bit cheeky. Usually one of my favourite drives back to Perth, it seemed a little drier and less beautiful than usual.
When I finally got to the outskirts of Perth, I met up with a few friends who were out on a mountain biking adventure over the weekend for some dinner in Armadale. Took the opportunity to scrub down my car while I was there.
Today’s Drive
